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GDP (official exchange rate)

$247.6 billion (2011 est.)

GDP composition (by sector)

Agriculture: 12%
Industry: 40%
Services: 48% (2011 est.)

Industry

Peninsular Malaysia: rubber and oil palm processing and manufacturing, light manufacturing, pharmaceuticals, medical technology, electronics, tin mining and smelting, logging, timber processing
Sabah: logging, petroleum production
Sarawak: agriculture processing, petroleum production and refining, logging

Tin and petroleum are the two major mineral resources that are absolutely crucial in the economy of Malaysia. Malaysia was at one time the largest producer of tin in the world until the tin market collapsed in the 1980s. It was in the 1970s that petroleum and natural gas took over from tin as the "bastion of the mineral extraction sector." The discovery of petroleum and natural gas in oil fields off Sabah, Sarawak and Terengganu has added much to the Malaysian economy. Other minerals of some significance are iron-ore, bauxite, copper, and coal along with industrial minerals like kaolin, clay, silica, limestone.

petroleum_production.jpg
"This platform, located in the Java Sea, is producing petroleum from a reservoir under the seafloor."


Agriculture

Peninsular Malaysia: palm oil, rubber, cocoa, rice
Sabeh: palm oil, subsistence crops; rubber, timber
Sarawek: palm oil, rubber, timber; pepper

Exports

Electronic equipment, petroleum and liquefied natural gas, wood and wood products, palm oil

Imports

Electronics, machinery, petroleum products, plastics, vehicles, iron and steel products, chemicals

Currency

Name: ringgits
Ringgits per US dollar: 3.006 (2011 est.)
3.22 (2010 est.)
3.52 (2009)
3.33 (2008)
3.46 (2007)
Malaysian_currency.jpg
Ringgits


Labor Force (by occupation)

Agriculture: 13%
Industry: 36%
Services: 51% (2005 est.)

Household Income

lowest 10%: 1.8%
highest 10%: 34.7% (2009 est.)



All the information on this page was taken from:
https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/my.html



© Kristin Miller 2012. Last revised: May 8, 2012. All Rights Reserved. For more information, please contact: Kristin Miller krmiller@hotmail.com